Paul tells the Corinthians Jesus is our hope. His resurrection grounds our faith; without our confident belief in its historical reality, our faith would be mere philosophy, and Jesus simply a great religious figure. Our belief is based on the testimony of those who encountered the Risen Christ, from Peter and the Twelve to Paul, who was converted by his meeting with the Lord on the road to Damascus. Encountering Christ in faith is always a surprise; it's a grace given to those with open hearts. It overturns our existence and opens us to an unexpected future, sowing life and light. This is the reason for our Easter joy: in the risen Jesus, who dwells in our midst, we encounter the power of God’s love, triumph over death, and receive new life and hope.

Acts 3:1-10A man crippled from birth begged Peter and John for alms at the temple gate. Peter: “I have neither silver nor gold, but what I do have I give you: in the name of Jesus Christ, walk.” Peter raised him up, and he stood, walked around, and went into the temple with them, walking and jumping and praising God. People recognized him as the one who used to beg at the gate and were amazed.

Ps 105:1-4, 6-9"Rejoice, O hearts that seek the Lord." Make known his deeds. Sing praise. Serve him constantly. He is our God and remembers his covenant.

Lk 24:13-35While two disciples were going to Emmaus, Jesus drew near and walked with them, but they didn't recognize him. “What are you talking about?” / “Don't you know what happened to Jesus?...” / “How slow you are to believe!...” He interpreted the Scriptures, they urged “Stay,” and he did. At table he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them; their eyes were opened, they recognized him, and he vanished. “Our hearts were burning as he opened the Scriptures to us!” They returned to Jerusalem, found the Eleven and others saying, “The Lord has been raised!” The two recounted what had taken place and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Creighton: When Peter and John come upon the cripple at the temple gate begging for alms, they "look intently" at him, he "paid attention to them," Peter tells him in the name of Jesus to rise and walk, he helps him up, and he's healed! We can assume Peter was “paying attention” to the risen Christ in him inviting him to reach out to the man. In the gospel the disciples weren't paying attention, caught up in worry and lost hope; only when Jesus blessed, broke, and shared bread did they start paying attention. These miracles occurred on ordinary days. God asks us to paying attention, observe, listen, consider, and notice inner stirrings. Dogs watch our movements and stare into our eyes; we can learn from them. It’s hard to let go of planning, rehearsing, rehashing, and interior “noise,” but doing something different can help bring us to our senses....

Passionist: Today's readings, and the others of Easter week, are about recognizing the Risen Lord in our midst. No stranger, he's present in our surroundings: in all who do good, in the suffering.... What keeps us from recognizing him is our narrow world view, our interpretation of events, and our belief that our judgment is accurate. In today's gospel, people like us saw their hopes dashed because things didn't go as they'd wanted. Innocence is put to death, Truth crucified, Justice condemned. A stranger shares a different vision, of life from death, redemptive suffering, hope overcoming all. We may break bread with a beggar, and our eyes will be opened and hearts burn, for we will have had an encounter with the Risen Lord.

DailyScripture.net: "Our hearts burned while he opened the Scriptures to us": Jesus' death scattered his disciples and shattered their hopes and dreams; they saw the cross as defeat until the Risen Lord appeared to them and gave them understanding. The disciples "were so disturbed when they saw him on the cross that they forgot his teaching, didn't look for his resurrection, and failed to keep his promises in mind" (Augustine, Sermon 235.1). "Their eyes were obstructed, that they should not recognize him until the breaking of the bread. And thus, ignorant that Christ would rise again, their eyes were hindered. Not that the truth himself was misleading them, but they couldn't perceive it" (Harmony of the Gospels 3, 25, 72). The Risen Lord is ready to speak to us and give us understanding. How often do we recognize him?